From a Friend

The leaves are turning from summer green to reds and yellows; the days are growing shorter and the nights a touch cooler. Bags of candy and colorful costumes are filling the shelves at the store. The Giants baseball season is essentially over, but hopefully the A’s are gearing up for the World Series and plan on keeping it here in the Bay Area! The 49ers and Raiders are well into their season and the Sharks are starting up too, along with the Warriors. Most of the grapes have been harvested. Fall is upon us, my friend. There is no denying it anymore, there are just too many signs pointing in that direction. Hopefully our Indian Summer will appear and keep things warm for us to enjoy a couple more months of great weather here in the Bay Area before the holidays sneak up on us all.

There is always a lot to do as the fall takes hold. Yes, we may have to wear a jacket and a cap, but there are lots and lots of outdoor activities on the horizon for everyone to enjoy! I know that our pages are full and so is the website, so make sure to start marking your calendars for some of the fun things that you want to do, before we get busy with the year’s end. Did I really just say that? Is 2013 really wrapping up in less than 90 days? It seems like just yesterday we were shaking off the frost and getting ready for spring. Well, spring will be here soon enough. Now is the time to enjoy the days before the sun starts to set at 5 PM and we will have precious little time to enjoy the outdoors.

As the year wraps up, so will the voting for our 2014 Locals Choice Awards. The voting ends on December 1st this year so make sure to nominate your favorites and to VOTE for them. We only have one winner for each of the three main counties we cover—Contra Costa, Napa and Solano—winners are selected by your vote alone. We all want to know the best places to shop and enjoy so make sure to tell us and let your friends know as well. Our winners will be revealed in our February/March issue as always so cast your vote today and every day until December 1st (you can vote once per day in each category)!

This is Deanna’s favorite season, so be sure to check out the calendar so not to miss any of the festivals and holiday events that will surely keep all of us on our toes for the next few weeks. At this time, we should all say our thanks and remember the less fortunate as well as our soldiers who can’t be at home at this time.

For our birthday shout outs we will give one to Christopher, Clara, Rory, Liz, Caroline, Lori N., Cristine, Kathe, Nico, Osby, Jeannie, Julia, Connie, Angelita, Valerie, Paula, Alyssa, our very own “Ben, Roving Reporter” and all the other ones that we do not have room to list!!

A HUGE Happy 60th Anniversary Mom and Dad! What an accomplishment, enjoy your day and all of you enjoy this wonderful season and the rest of your 2013.